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Bankruptcy generally lasts for a year but it remains on credit files for six years, making it harder to get future loans and other financial services.

Another option is an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA)- a formally binding deal to pay back debts over a period of time.

Plymouth Moor View has the highest rate of insolvency in the whole of the UK

Repayment plans, which typically last five years, are drawn up with an insolvency practitioner and then put to the creditors. If the payments do not cover the debts in full, the remainder is written off.

Not everyone can get an IVA, however, and not all types of debt are covered.

A third option are Debt Relief Orders (DROs), which are only available to people who owe less than £20,000.